The 2001 APJN meeting in Aotearoa/New Zealand was memorable for two reasons: for the depth and seriousness of our agenda and discussions, but also for the atmosphere in which we met. Our brothers and sisters in Aotearoa/New Zealand have the great gift of an indigenous people, the Maoris, whose unique culture and spirituality have contributed enormously to the life of the church in the Province.

"Initial meetings at Lambeth Palace with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr George Carey, and at the Vatican with Pope John Paul II and with officials of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, in discerning the mandate of the new commission"

In 2001, a UN Report concluded that in as many as 50 countries children are suffering in the middle of armed conflict. Increasingly in some areas children are specifically targeted, recruited as combatants or abducted to serve as sexual slaves to soldiers. Articles from Burundi, Sierra Leone, Congo, Rwanda, the Sudan, Uganda and Tanzania, give glimpses of the horror. Not only Africa is affected: authors from Iraq, Sri Lanka, Brazil, Cambodia, Palestine, Israel and Northern Ireland write of the violence perpetrated against children and tell of the ministry of the Church to these casualties of war.

tells of the "treasure of education" which is lost through war, poverty, family breakdown or - in parts of the world - is denied to girls and women. The articles give voice to those for whom education is not provided by the state free of charge and shows how the gender gap has a high cost with an increased mortality rate among babies born to ill-educated women. In the developed world, articles from Australia and New Zealand and UK emphasise the importance of value-based education and the need to support and strengthen families.

The frequent gathering of Primates is one of the main ways by which the 38 provinces of the Anglican Communion, representing over 70,000,000 Christians, express and build their unity. We are grateful to the Archbishop of Canterbury for inviting us to gather for this time of prayer and deliberation, and to the Episcopal Church, USA for their hospitality at Kanuga Conference Center, North Carolina.

Following a European phase of international conversations between representatives from the Anglican Communion and the Baptist World Alliance at Norwich Cathedral, England in September 2000, the Asian phase was held from January 18-21, 2001 in Yangon, Myanmar.